NSW public library wiki

24 November, Hawkesbury Library.

Andrea Curr (State Library of NSW), Jane Broadbere (Mosman), Kathryn Joss (City of Sydney), Liz Griffiths (Willoughby), Annetta Kucharska (Auburn), Krupali Tevar (Parramatta), Carole Dent (City of Sydney), Jackie West (Blacktown), Robyn Menzies (Hawkesbury), Ellen Forsyth (State Library of NSW).

"I would like to acknowledge the traditional custodians of the land that we are meeting on today, the Dhurug People.”

Eric Dodson (Lane Cove), Vanessa Stockford (Penrith), Catherine Buddin (Pittwater), Catherine Johnson (Coffs Harbour), Shiralee Franks (Tamworth). Michelle Goldsmith (Wyong), Jennifer Wilson

- None

- Andrea Curr http://www.druginfo.sl.nsw.gov.au/

• Getting people engaged with the collections is important. The Know your drug facts sheets are helpful. A set has been mailed to all NSW public libraries. Libraries can order more copies of specific titles from NSW Heath, according to local need and interest. Libraries should be removing superseded publications.
• Know your standards – low awareness of the size of a standard drink. All public libraries have a Know your standards kit. More can be borrowed from Andrea for specific events. It is a different way of expressing information. Have a look at the information on the druginfo website (look at the toolkit as it has ideas about how to use the Know your standards kit Contact Andrea for more information drug.info@sl.nsw.gov.au.
• Beer goggles can be borrowed too.

It can be difficult to think outside the box of our experience or library and come up with new and original ways of doing things. We automatically reference our ideas against what we *know* and can struggle to break away from this reality. Sometimes changing the setting or environment helps to remove the blinkers of what we know and allows us to more creative and free-thinking. that's what the following scenario is all about - taking the problem outside of what we know and looking for some truly original solutions. Take it back to your library and challenge your colleagues to see what they come up with!

Read the following scenario and discuss:

You are the newly appointed reference librarian for a series of small colonies on Mars. Your clients are rarely able to physically visit your library and although there is a supply run between locations it is irregular and takes a long time to complete a circuit of the colonies. Paper is a scarce and impractical resource due to conditions on the surface but electronic devices are common. Due to the conditions on the planet and the type of work people do (we're probably strip mining it for resources) most of your clients work non-traditional hours (even though a day on Mars is about the same length as an Earth day).

What services would you offer? How would you advertise/promote these services? What skills would you need to do so?

These notes are a summary of the discussion – which was too complex and involved to fully record in the minutes

• Videos
• How to
• Seed bank
• Care of insects – as pollinators and protein
• 3D printer and design
• Repairs for equipment – including replicator
• Visual reference
• First aid, home remedies, home remedies
• Recreational reading/viewing/playing
• Water harvesting techniques
• Electronic transmission
• Embedded librarians – give better interaction, better capacity to assist, better use of resources
• Library as people connectors,
• Conflict resolution, dealing with difficult people
• Way to talk with your remote clients – vision communication/facetime
• Reading group, fiction/non-fiction
• Maybe children’s activities (depending on mix in colony)
• History from earth, so can learn about the past – how to throw a distant birthday party
• Having a library space –separate to work and eating, space to come together
• How to make alcohol out of plants, can you do low g sauerkraut
• Low g games
• Exercise in low g,
• Repair manuals – for a lot of things
• Colony induction information
• How can I fix it, I am bored, I need to come and hang out because I need to mix with people/make connections

Connecting with the community – valid part of what the library does, the event/visit as a worthy thing

See Where reference fits and Reference isn't dead, just different what are the implications for your library services.

• Value of small group sessions, information based, for connecting people in the community, computer sessions, and language sessions also important for connecting the community together. Social element of libraries is important. Reading groups, knitting, other making, colouring groups, all ways to connect the community.
• Discussion about roving services, reading body language, welcoming people to the library. Staff being identifiable is important
• Making sure staff want to do the job. Information services require customer service. Cultural shift to serve the clients, here for the clients, and how to reach clients for all services including information services.
• Reference to Jane Caro at Switch about the focus for the clients, and it is about the clients. Links to the information about this available via this link http://achivasregalmoment.blogspot.com.au/2015/11/switch-2015-nsw-public-libraries.html
• Schmidt, Aaron & Etches, Amanda, 1975- (2014).Useful, usable, desirable : applying user experience design to your library(First edition). Chicago ALA Editions, an imprint of the American Library Association

- what are libraries doing?

- does anyone have any feedback/local developments? What is your Council doing?

• Discussion about opportunities, for bringing services together with community focus, thinking about library services, and information services for these changes, also about how to provide information service to their communities, also libraries as part of the roles in the Fit for the future changes.
• Libraries are used to work cooperatively, so talking with other libraries involved.

What topics around reference services are a challenge? What would you like to explore? This will help plan the meetings for next year. Suggestions are shown below:

• meaningful measurement for reference and information services – ecr, why we measure and how we use it, focus groups, how do people use their statistics, - how are the statistics used in their work place (can we get a statistics person to talk about why we measure etc?) collecting numbers and collecting stories – how to collect the bigger picture stories/accounts, includes show and tell
• using tablets for roving – what goes on the desktop – show and tool, staff tools for roving reference
• update from the corporate group
• hsc programs – what is happening, what could happen
• reference outreach – how do you reach specific communities, how do you get the services out to the community
• staff training for reference and information services – what do you do, what do staff enjoy, how do you keep people up to date – standing item
• who is using webinars for staff training
• what are people buying in reference, what is working?
• Combined reference/corporate library meeting
• How do we get people thinking about the ‘I have a question?’ approach
• Database discussion – are the statistics for some low because they aren’t promoted or because they aren’t used/needed? How are databases promoted and trained? How findable are they on your website?
• Discussion about what information can look like, reference is off putting, it is about people being able to find stuff

- seeking a couple of new members - what is involved. Nominate here

The next meeting will be at Tamworth in February 2016, volunteers to host future meetings for August and November 2016 would be welcome.

(what summary of the meeting goes out with the minutes)

Back to Reference and information services working group home page